Tyco and Kozlowski settle compensation lawsuit

An almost decade-long dispute between Tyco International Ltd. and its former CEO, Dennis Kozlowski, has come to an end.

On Friday, Tyco and Kozlowski settled litigation concerning whether Kozlowski—who was convicted and jailed in 2005 for massive fraud—should return $505.8 million in compensation and benefits to the company.

“An agreement in principle was reached today between the parties,” Tyco said in a statement. “Because this is a matter of ongoing litigation, we have no additional comments about the case.”

The settlement was announced just three days before a trial was scheduled to begin on how much damages Tyco should receive.

The civil litigation between Tyco and Kozlowski dates back to 2002, when Tyco accused Kozlowski of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. In 2005, Kozlowski was convicted of securities fraud, grand larceny and falsifying business records, and he was sentenced to 8 1/3 to 25 years in prison.

In April, the New York Parole Board denied Kozlowski parole, reasoning that his release from prison would “deprecate the seriousness” of his crimes and “undermine respect for the law.” Kozlowski will not come before the Parole Board again until April 2014.